I first heard about Studio Ghibli when I rented the strange movie Princess Mononoke from the local video store. At that time, I didn't really think too much about it, just like I don't think anything about TriStar Pictures, or Paramount Pictures when their little logo shows up before the beginning of a movie. I was probably between 10-12 at this time, so things like that just didn't matter at all to me.

But the movie, it was crazy! From the disgusting, deranged boar, to the insanely creepy kodama, and the strange Forest Spirit and his many horns. I think the first time I watched it, I was in awe almost the entire movie. You didn't see things this weird (or gory) on shows here (at least not the normal kind I watched at that age). I convinced my sister to watch it with me one day, and she had pretty much the same reaction as I did. As strange as this movie was, it was really good!


At that time, we had dial-up in our house, so I was never able to do a lot of online browsing, so the movie and Studio Ghibli slipped out of my mind again until 2001. I remember hearing so much suddenly about this new movie that had been released in Japan by Studio Ghibli, Spirited Away. I'm not sure what it was that drew it to me, maybe then it was just the fact that it was something made in Japan or that it was another Studio Ghibli title, I just had to see it! And then, the commercials came on tv. Spirited Away was being released in North America!
Spirited Away was released in Canada in November 2002, and after mentioning this movie to my grandma, she went out and bought it and sent it to me for Christmas. Needless to say, I was ecstatic when I saw it on Christmas day, and watched it over and over again for weeks afterwards. After that, I really knew Studio Ghibli was something special. I had never watched any other movies that captivated and enthralled me the way that Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away did. It wasn't long before I started searching for more information about Studio Ghibli, and was excited to learn that they had a few other titles that were already released in North America, and more coming soon!

Studio Ghibli, Inc. (株式会社スタジオジブリ Kabushiki-kaisha Sutajio Jiburi) is a Japanese animation film studio. The company's logo features the character Totoro from Hayao Miyazaki's film My Neighbor Totoro.

Several anime features created by Studio Ghibli have won the Animage Anime Grand Prix award, including: Laputa: Castle in the Sky, in 1986; My Neighbor Totoro, in 1988; and Kiki's Delivery Service, in 1989. In 2002, Spirited Away won an Oscar for Best Animated Feature and it remains the only anime film to have done so

 Name

The name Ghibli is based on the Arabic name for the sirocco, or Mediterranean wind, which the Italians used for their Saharan scouting planes in the Second World War. The idea being that the studio would blow a new wind through the Japanese anime industry.

Though the Italian word is pronounced with a hard /ɡ/, the Japanese pronunciation of the studio's name is with a soft g, [dʑíbɯɽi].

History

Founded in 1985, the studio is headed by the directors Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata and the producer Toshio Suzuki. Prior to the formation of the studio, Miyazaki and Takahata had already had long careers in Japanese film and television animation and had worked together on Hols: Prince of the Sun and Panda! Go, Panda!; and Suzuki was an editor at Tokuma Shoten's Animage manga magazine.

The studio was founded after the success of the 1984 film Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, written and directed by Miyazaki for Topcraft and distributed by Tōei. The origins of the the film lie in the first two volumes of a serialized manga written by Miyazaki for publication in Animage as a way of generating interest in an anime version. Suzuki was part of the production team on the film and founded Studio Ghibli with Miyazaki, who also invited Takahata to join the new studio.

The studio has mainly produced films by Miyazaki, with the second most prolific director being Takahata (most notably with Grave of the Fireflies). Other directors who have worked with Studio Ghibli include Tomomi Mochizuki, Yoshifumi Kondo, Hiroyuki Morita and Gorō Miyazaki. Composer Joe Hisaishi has provided the soundtrack for all of Miyazaki's Studio Ghibli films.

Many of Ghibli's works are distributed in Japan by Toho. Internationally, the Walt Disney Company has rights to all of Ghibli's output that did not have previous international distribution, including the global, non-Japan distribution rights to Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away.

Over the years, there has been a close relationship between Studio Ghibli and the magazine Animage, which regularly runs exclusive articles about the studio and its members in a section titled "Ghibli Notes." Artwork from Ghibli's films and other works frequently features on the cover of the magazine. Between 1999 and 2005 Studio Ghibli was a subsidiary of Tokuma Shoten, the publisher of Animage.

In October 2001, the Ghibli Museum opened in Tokyo. It contains exhibits based on Studio Ghibli films and shows animations, including an number of short Studio Ghibli films not available elsewhere.

The company is well-known for its strict "no-edits" policy in licensing their films abroad. This was a result of the dubbing of Miyazaki's Nausicaä of the Valley of Wind when the film was released in the United States as Warriors of the Wind. The film was heavily edited and Americanized, with significant portions cut and the plot rewritten. The "no cuts" policy was highlighted when Miramax co-chairman Harvey Weinstein suggested editing Princess Mononoke to make it more marketable. In response, a Studio Ghibli producer sent an authentic katana with a simple message: "No cuts".

On February 1, 2008, Toshio Suzuki stepped down from the position of Studio Ghibli president, which he had held since 2005, and Koji Hoshino (former president of Walt Disney Japan) took over. Suzuki said he wanted to improve films with his own hands as a producer, rather than demanding this from his employees. Suzuki decided to hand over the presidency to Hoshino because Hoshino has helped Studio Ghibli to sell its videos since 1996, as well as helping to release the Princess Mononoke film in the United States.

Currently, Takahata and Goro Miyazaki (director of Tales from Earthsea and Hayao's son) are developing projects for release after Hayao Miyazaki's Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea.

 Related Links
Studio Ghibli Official Site (JP)
Official Site of Studio Ghibli Museum (JP & EN)